Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Stock up on throwing knives! Invest your money in freeze-dried food and shotguns! From an economic stand-point, 2009 is going to stink!

Luckily, economic indicators exist in any work-place environment that can help you determine how your company will fare in the year ahead.

Firstly, what is the quantity and quality of the Xmas munchies your company put out this season? Where I am, it was nothing but unshelled peanuts, and people ate 'em and liked 'em. Thats a bad sign.

At your Xmas office party, how many people were slipping extra slices of meat into their pockets or purses? Did women-folk battle over the last ham-bone, for the "young 'uns" back home?

And if you see a guy wandering around asking about your HVAC system, you're fucked. The place is being sold out from under you. Something everyone should be thinking about, especially if you work for the feds.

What's wrong with this picture? "A tragic story, handled ineptly," according to the Sun Family Blog.Probably the most egregious thing is using a shot of the Rockies in summer for an avalanche story. Conclusion:

As a former Sun staffer who was constantly told we're cutting staff in newsrooms to populate the website, only to see the website understaffed by the cheapest staff possible, front pages like this seem like poetic justice. Obviously, you do get what you pay for.And, oh yeah, this picture still hasn't been changed.

...with the Israeli response to Hamas rocket attacks does not lie in considerations of proportionality. It lies in the fact that none of the strategies under contemplation going forward will have any effect on anything beyond the shortest of short terms. Furthermore, nobody in the Israeli leadership structure really expects them to. Here's Yossi Alpher, from a couple of days ago:

The graph is from a couple of days later than the comment, so it looks as though coverage has begun to increase once again, although it has turned far lower than the long-term average. See here for more.

Saturday, December 27, 2008

My 2009 Farmer's Almanac includes an article called "Is global warming on the wane?" Curiously, the graphs included don't look anything like those presented by University of Victoria professor Andrew Weaver on climate change at the UofC last monthNote that the Old Farmer's Almanac is not The Farmer's Almanac. They look very similar and have both been around for years but are not the same. More information here. For what its worth, I bought my mother-in-law The Harrowsmith Almanac this year because of this.

A few bits of "inside baseball" stuff re Free Dominion and their ongoing troubles with the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

1) Heavily redacted documents supplied to Connie and Ed by the CHRC prove rather conclusively that investigator Dean Steacy was not randomly investigating the forum in advance of specific complaints raised against it. The timing of his actions have been a bugaboo for ages now, as it was felt that Mr. Steacy had it in for FreeD merely because of the board's politics. From January of this year:

Friday, December 26, 2008

Kinsella has been harvesting information on the Grinchess that almost stole Chanukah . One of the facts to emerge is that Ms. Burke sits on (or sat on) the BOD of the Canadian Coalition for Democracies. These guys were founded by Conservative MP Peter Kent back in 2003. In addition to engaging in some hard-core Muslim bashing, the CCD, whose mandate says nothing about Canada's abortion laws (or lack thereof), recently appeared on a list of organizations supporting the Canada Family Action Coalition complaint to the Judicial Council (.pdf here) re Henry Morgentaler's receiving the Order of Canada.

I contacted CCD President Al Gordon via email about how that happened, but all he did was regale me with with vague threats of what sounded like legal action. Given Mr. Kent's pro-choice views, it is difficult to imagine that he would have gotten behind this effort. The most likely hypothesis is that one of the other members of the CCD Board of Directors gave CFAC the nod.

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

This may be my last post until the other side. I'm off to my local Walmart to harass the staff by bitching about how they've got two representations of baby Jesus for every Menorah and if they don't even up things pronto in the name of diversity I'll never shop there again and I'll sue their asses to the wall.

I've also printed up a couple of blank CHRC complaint forms. When Walmart management sees you filling out one of those they crap. Maybe I can wrangle myself a couple of free poinsettias.

For a fossil so controversial, Longisquama insignis is a nondescript little beast. I've actually seen the one collected specimen, or at least a high-grade cast of it, at the ROM a couple of years ago, touring with the Russian dinosaurs exhibit. The entire animal could probably have stood in the palm of my hand.

But Longisquama has assumed a significance all out of proportion to its size due to the role it has played in the debate over bird origins. As you can see, the creature possessed a series of long scale structures growing on its back. Some (Feduccia, among others) have interpreted these structures as being feathers, or at least "proto-feathers", which the animal employed to glide among the Triassic tree-tops, or as a kind of parachute. They have suggested that Longisquama therefore counts as one of the earliest bird ancestors in the fossil record. Thus its existence tells against the dominant theory in paleontological circles: that birds have descended from dinosaurs (are dinosaurs, as a matter of fact).

Based on new finds and their comparison with the type material, we show that Longisquama’s appendages consist of a single-branched internal frame enclosed by a flexible outer membrane. Not supporting a categorization either as feathers or as scales, our analysis demonstrates that the Longisquama appendages formed in a two-stage, feather-like developmental process, representing an unusual early example for the evolutionary plasticity of sauropsid integument.

And nope, they're not any kind of flight structure. They are not even paired as in the illustration above:

The theory of an airborne Longisquama using its elongate appendages as gliding devices was introduced for the first time by Sharov (1970) and later adopted and adapted by others Haubold and Buffetaut 1987; Jones et al. 2000; Martin 2004). It is rejected here for two reasons: (1) According to our and previous observations (Sharov 1970; Unwin et al. 2000; Unwin and Benton 2001), the holotype comprises only a single fanned-out row of appendages with no indication for the postmortem bending and loss of a second row, as assumed by Jones et al. (2000). (2) Unlike reptilian gliders, such as Coelurosauravus, Sharovipteryx, kuehneosaurids, and draco lizards, whose wing membranes are spanned close to the trunk and supported by limbs, ribs, or bony spines (Fig. 4a, see Schaller 1985), a gliding Longisquama with two rows of dorsal appendages would possess a continuous airfoil only distally where the expanded portions may partially overlap (Fig. 4b). With the bulk lift created far from the center of mass, the strain on the anchoring would be high, maximizing the risk of structural failure, especially if a flexible joint existed as in the reconstruction of Haubold and Buffetaut (1987). The orderly arrangement of appendages in PIN 2584/9 (Fig. 4c) has been interpreted as a “thoracic wing” by Martin (2004), but preservation effects or an alternative function can explain it as well: If the animal could fan out a single row of appendages by rotation in the sagittal plane (Fig. 4d), it might have used this mechanism only occasionally—e.g., for protection mimicry or for sexual display—most of the time, the appendages might have rested in a horizontal position. As in PIN 2584/9, they would overlap and form a series of successively smaller elements. Erection would have been realized by a system of longitudinal muscles attached to the deeply countersunk follicles.

Oh well. Here's a reconstruction showing the scales in their correct position. They might have been some kind of sexual display structure, which is not nearly as exciting.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Pictures such as this set off a good deal of discussion in the blogosphere last week over the connection between Global Warming and big winter storms like the one just winding up outside of my window. Some of this discussion was well-meaning but confused, and some of it quite painfully stupid.

I thought I would pinch from a recent essay by blogger Tamino to help clarify things.

The graph above shows the NA snow cover trend back to the 1970s. Tamino's analysis of it and several similar graphs concludes as follows:

From Michael Taube's top ten list of Canadian left-wing bloggers in today's NP. Since he claims the list is in "no particular order", but that Calgary Grit is the one "must read" on it, I am going to claim #2 spot, and anyone I see that even vaguely resembles Dan Arnold is going to get a kick in the ankle.

Well, good on Mr. Doherty and Co. The WTBA wants to be treated as a "serious" organization, and this kind of move will go some ways towards achieving that end. Now they might approach their policy chair Sheldon Johnston re some of the apparently inaccurate statements in his CV.

I am unimpressed by the latest CHRC "scandal", and particularly unimpressed by the comparison of Mr. Al-Hayiti's book (L’Islam ou l’Intégrisme?), which the CHRC argued did not meet the Section 13 standard, to the writings of Stephen Boisson, which were judged to havemet that standard. Most of my arguments get hashed out in the comments (ignore NAMBLA-Dick) here, but the short version is that Boisson's letter to the Red Deer Advocate triggered a concrete incident of gay bashing by one of Mr. Boisson's associates, and it is pretty easy to interpret his letter in context as a concrete call to action against the local homosexual community (as opposed to Mr. Al-Hayiti's book, in which the offensive language is rather vague).

In any case, while Mr. Boisson has argued his case on various blogs and other online forums, Mr. Al-Hayiti thus far has not. So I fired off a quick email to the yahoo group he is associated with Mr. Al-Hayiti's and asked him:

Would Mr. Al-Hayiti like to respond to the claims in this and other stories that his book contains language likely to expose gays, lesbians, and jews to "hatred and contempt"?

Mr. Al-Hayiti responded as follows:

Maybe the complaint should have been against the Qor'an, the Word of God! Or maybe even against the bible also! Do you think the commission should censor God? Everything I said in my book is from the revelation, not from me! I have nothing else to say.Thank you!

[33] The Complainant has thus ignored or failed to comply with numerous time limits set by the Tribunal in the present case. Based on the evidence before me, there is no reasonable excuse to explain the Complainant's late or non-existent compliance with all of these Tribunal directions. I cannot but infer that the Complainant has no interest in following through with his complain

[34] The Tribunal is entitled to protect its process from abuse brought on by this sort of wholesale disregard of time limits, which in this instance has rendered the case completely static for at least two years, an unreasonably long time. I therefore grant the Respondent's motion. The complaint is dismissed.

Furthermore, if you look at this decision, you will note that it is dated 2007/10/17. Even if there is more documentation that I have missed--if, for example, there is another complaint that Mr. Johnston filed and pursued to a successful conclusion--the decision emanating from this successful complaint would almost certainly have to have been issued after October 2007.

But the first Muslim Chaplain to join the CF was Suleyman Demiray, and he was welcomed into the service in late 2003. So it is very difficult to see how Mr. Johnston's complaint could have had any impact on this event.

It being a slow news day, I have nothing to offer but this article on Iggy's foreign policy from Embassy Magazine. It offers nothing in the way of new information, but does go some way to explaining why many within the Liberal party view Ignatieff with discomfort.

Incidentally, of all the reasons to criticize Iggy's support the invasion of Iraq, one that doesn't get alot of play is the fact that he had already seen several years of things going wrong in Afghanistan and Kosovo. Empire Lite is an extended bitch against the same kind of mismanagement (nation building "on the cheap", he calls it) that has afflicted the U.S. occupation of Iraq.

(Although as fodder for attack ads I think this stuff is mostly water lone gone under the bridge. I suspect now the line of attack will be his "installation" as Lib Leader, which won't work, and his status as an "intellectual", which might cut a little more sharply.)

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Hello All Because of various comments appearing on blogs I thought it would be prudent to answer some questions about me and my relationship with the WBTA. In 2004, I ran for the Separation Party of Alberta in Calgary Shaw against Cindy Ady, in 2008, I ran for the Wildrose Alliance in the constituency of Highwood. I am a conservative who believes that liberal and conservative principles should co-exist in a spirit of bi-partisanship, hence strengthening and unifying democratic principals. I joined the WBTA because I believe that Eastern Canada has marginalized the West politically for too many years. I have seen little change in the two decades that I have lived in Western Canada. I have however, heard many politicians from Eastern Canada express their desire to dismantle Western Canada’s economy vis-à-vis taxes (Stephan Dion Green Shift platform) and other schemes such as Cap and Trade (supported by Gilles Duceppe). I believe one must approach this from a balanced perspective. Any drastic shift either way will undoubtedly cause drastic effects in our economy. In the interests of keeping this entry short, I will not go into detail on this subject except to say I have and will always support better care of our environment. The prospect of Western secession has both Conservative and Liberal overtones. From a Liberal perspective, the potential social programs we Westerners have compromised to support Eastern programs are staggering. I lived in Montreal for roughly 20 years and I am well aware of the social programs of Quebec. A few weeks ago, CJAD in Montreal did a radio poll and one third of those Quebecer’s polled believe Quebec supports Western Canada including Alberta. My goal, put quite simply, is to open a dialog of what is BEST for Western Canada. Addressing this question in a candid forum is in everybody’s best interest. One question you could ask yourself now is, “If Western Canada were already a separate nation, would we be negotiating to become a part of Canada?”In closing, the WBTA is NOT a political party; it is an association to gather support for a political party yet to be selected. I look forward to all your comments. You may email me at vp@itstimetogo.caWarmest RegardsDan DohertyVP Western Businesses & Taxpayers Association

This letter is in response to the recent comments circulating regarding Ernie Slump. The Western Businesses and Taxpayers Association do not support any offensive remarks and or actions, particularly regarding ethnicity, religion, gender or sexual orientation. David Crutcher and our Council have contacted Ernie to provide him with a forum to explain his comments.

Our policy is one of inclusion and we deeply apologize to anyone this may have offended. I will keep you up to date of any new developments.

We greatly appreciate you bringing this to our attention and I look forward to any comments or questions you may have.

Well, I doubt this last bit, as converting the entire (for example) British road system to this technology would only generate enough power to drive 34,500 small cars. Still, any projects attempting to harvest and use waste energy are to be encouraged.

And this reminds me of a Centenial College experiment from a few years back in which students tried to determine whether wind generated by traffic on the 401 could power a turbine. It could not, unfortunately:

Eli Rabbit has, apparently, been following SEPP's financials for years now. If you're interested in how one of the most prominent denialists gets paid, click on the link above. It is an interesting read.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

You've read about the WBTA's B.C. Chair Ernie Slump here and here. Well, it turns out Ernie is a bit peculiar even for a Western Separatist. For one thing, not all of B.C. is even being invited to the Western Separatist Party:

How about: the official gaunch of the Canadian Government? Maybe he can even get the PM on board.

Stephen Harper: "I have felt so much more relaxed and conciliatory since I donned my new gaunch."Get your own pair here (with picture and video gallery). They kind of resemble a more aerodynamic version of an Elizabethan cod-piece, so if you need a little help up front...

[Glen] Dundas used to be with the SPA [Separation Party of Alberta]; then he went onto the Republic of Alberta, which seems to have morphed into the Republic of Western Canada.So, the same old same old separatist crew?

Other names on the list at this moment include Dan Doherty and Sheldon Johnston, who I know nothing about.

1) Due to website issues, the WTBA Executive Council will not be announced on until late Wednesday (Dec. 17). At that point, at least five of the positions, including Policy Chair, will have been filled.

Mr. Crutcher claims almost 200 Members at this point and several $1,000s in funding. He also has invited sceptics like myself to debate the movement in a "serious manner". Once their white paper appears, I shall be happy to do so.

Until that time, there are a few scraps of interesting information in their "six point plan":

1) Create separatist network that will strengthen the businesses of separatists and help them prosper so they can in turn donate to groups like the Separation Party of Alberta and / or any other party that may come along in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.

[...]

3) We will fund any and all who share our vision of a new nation.

[...]

6)Provide training in Campaign Management, Candidate Development, Fundraising, Media Training and more for those that want to organize for elected office or to promote the separation agenda across Western Canada or in their provinces specifically.

So: not a political party, but a network that would fund political parties. And note once again that Manitoba seems to be absent from their plans.

Federal government moves to bail-out the auto industry are correct for moral, if not economic reasons, but Bourrie raises a helluva a good point. And in any case a bail-out can at best only make the ride to the bottom a little bit easier for these people.

But wait! At the latest version of the WTBA EC page ,the position of policy chair has been entirely eliminated!!!

So are Crutcher and Gregson already on the outs? Has the nascent WBTA already begun to fragment along ideological lines--like who gets to be Supreme Commander on Tuesdays--or did they merely quarrel over who sits at the head of the official WTBA coffee table?

I'll be following this one closely in the days and weeks ahead.

As an aside, if you've ever wondered why these separatist groups tend to leave Manitoba out of their definition of The West, here is Mr. Crutcher on the topic:

A rather complex ruling, and I admit to having only skimmed the thing so far, but its clear that even this brief statement contains a number of distortions. For one thing, the complaint was in regards to the wages of a number of South American workers vs. their European counterparts (Seli being an Italian company that digs tunnels all over the planet), not vs. home-grown Vancouver workers.

For another, while it is true that a number of the complainants voted to no longer be represented by their union, this vote, arranged by the company, was itself judged to be a retaliatory act against the complainants:

The crux of the Union’s retaliation complaint is a petition which the Employer presented to members of the Complainant Group for signature. It was written in Spanish. Translated, it says: “I no longer wish the Union to represent me before the Human Rights Tribunal.” (para. 21)The result: $10,000 for each employee, an appeal by Seli Canada, and a bit of finger-wagging by the federal government.H/t Shotgun Blog.

Ex-NDP MP Dennis Gruending has been writing "Pulpit and Politics" for just over a year now. He is now up for a 2008 Canadian Blog Award in the category of Best Religious-Philosophy blog, and has indeed reached the final round. The title pretty much says it all: Mr. Gruending examines the intersection of Canadian politics and both right and left wing political movements. Level-headed, scholarly, but always a good read. When the final round opens, he's got my vote.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Dear Editor,Re: Death threats cannot be protected speech, December 14,Whereas I appreciate the point that the commenter wishes to make, namely that speech calling for violence is abusive; this article abrogates the basic ethics of journalism by quoting a defendant's assertion given at a human rights hearingthat has never been settled. Here is the phrase: "...the defence suggested Warman--a former CHRC employee--was among those who would post provocative messages to the site using fake identities, in the hope of entrapping other site users..."Even though described as the "defendant's suggestion at hearing" this kind of quote causes the[...] newspaper to side in an as yet unsettled legal dispute. I certainly hope that the newspaper doesn't interfere with or make pronouncements on other legal proceedings in the same way.I think Harry might have got the newspaper in question wrong, which is why the quick edit above. But otherwise he catches what is at the minimum some exceedingly shoddy reporting out of...you guessed it...CanWest.

Just for clarity, here's an expanded version of the quote he mentions:

During a CHRC tribunal considering the activities of Canadian website operator Marc Lemire, the defence suggested Warman--a former CHRC employee-- was among those who would post provocative messages to the site using fake identities, in the hope of entrapping other site users.

I first wrote this in December, 2006, and have decided to repost it every year until it becomes as famous as the editorial on which it is based.

No Virginia, Its All Bullshit!

In December of 1897, sad little Virgnia O'Hanlon wrote to The New York Sun as follows:

Dear Editor: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

To which chief editor Francis P. Church replied with a now very famous editorial called, "Yes Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus". In the spirit of the season, I will reproduce that editorial here, with some of my own comments to little Miss O'Hanlon interspersed:

Virginia, your little friends are wrong.

They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Virginia, your letter wound-up on the desk of a gouty old fart desperately nostalgic for The Good Old Days which, believe me, existed only in his mind. You think kids back in 1897 were bad? You should see 'em now! A more useless gang of pimple face punks has never afflicted the Earth's surface! They've got green hair, rings through their noses, and they shave their chests and carry 9 mms and smoke crystal meth! Frankly, you and Mr. Church had it easy! He should quit bitching.

Also, Mr. Church works for The Sun, so he's what your father would probably have called a soak, and what in my day we call a lush bucket. This piece of drivel probably got hacked out between bottles of cheap whiskey. Rot-gut liquor has been the source of more bad rhetoric than War and Love combined.

And furthermore, what is this "intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth" supposed to be? Looks like your dear editor was using his newspaper to proselytize some version of the Christian Religion at you. These days things such a thing wouldn't fly. A word to the Feds and we could have God-Boy's ass fired so hard out the door that he wouldn't land until next Xmas.

Anyway, Mr. Church keeps on editorializing:

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

What are these... THREATS? If Santa isn't real, Poetry will disappear? The Lights will go out? Holy shit, in my day if some old guy started feeding a little girl like you such a dose of baloney, they'd slap a restraining order on him!

And what's this about there being no Virginias if kids don't believe in Santa? There wouldn't be a North or South Virginia in the first place if Whitey assholes like Mr. Church hadn't come ashore and slaughtered the peaceful Kis'muk'ti-tuk Indians who were already living there! And what's Santa Claus got to do with any of that? Is Mr. Church insinuating that Santa was leading the charge against the Indian villages in his sleigh, innocent Abo kids impaled on the steel-edged antlers of his robotic rain-deer?

This guy kills me! But he's just warming up:

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies.... The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

Kid, you've hooked a serious nutter. Believe me, you can take full pleasure in your lawn without worrying about inadvertently trampling dancing fairies. And if by any chance you do manage to squash one, I hear they're damn good eating.

But seriously, there are many unseen and unseeable things in the world, like Debt and Remorse and Poison Gases and cancer-causing Gamma Radiation from The Sun. However, Fairies ARE NOT AMONG THEM!
If this Church fellow has any knowledge of Fairies, its because there's one fluttering in and out of that whiskey bottle he's been sucking on. Yeah, Virginia, these days we've got a word for his kind of fairies: delirious tremblins, we call 'em.

But wait...There's More!

You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart.
Kid, don't tear apart any baby rattles. That would be cruel. Besides, there's just this little plastic bean thing that bounces around inside making the sound. It's no big mystery. Leave your little brother's toys alone. He'll cry.

Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond.
Magic mushrooms do the same trick. They can also convince you that jam bands like Phish or the Grateful Dead don't suck. But that wears off.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
Okay, little sister, here's how Xmas really works. Capitalist society has trained your parents to drool like Pavlov's dog at the sight of a fat guy in a red suit. So, believe The Hype or not, you're going to get piles of gifts at exactly the same time every year. Your folks can't help it, and you couldn't stop them if you wanted to.

And the gift getting part is all that should really matter, for deep down Xmas a time of getting, getting all you can when the getting's good. When you become older and start buying gifts of your own, you'll realize the truth of what I'm saying. Then you'll understand that if the total amount of money you spend on gifts is less than the total amount of the gifts you get, you've WON Xmas!

...and that is a terrific feeling. And Santa's got nothing to do with it.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

That was the title of the keynote talk at a workshop held here last week. To save you the trouble of reading any further, I should just say now that the answer provided was "no, at least not to any significant extent since the middle of last century".I may play around later with Inhofe's updated (650 scientists!) list of deniers. But one of the new names on the list is Oliver "Iron Sun" Manuel, who I have previously written about here.

Hmm. About where it always is. But at least the Tories are out of Majority territory. The post-Coalition upward blip was just that. An adrenalin fuelled "rally round the flag" effect. Hopefully, this new result will keep Harper and Co. from getting too uppity in their Jan. budget.

I, too, would have believed that the CHRC's Ian Fine received the bigoted e-mails he describes, and I even would have believed that Richard Warman was threatened by a man in the U.S. named Bill White.[...]But after last month's day-long hearing, where we learned that the CHRC regularly confects such bigoted comments themselves and goes to great (and sometimes illegal) lengths to hide their tracks, I just can't take any claims from the CHRC or Warman seriously that rely on Internet comments, the provenance of which cannot be independently verified.

And the "Bill White" Internet site -- well, let's just say that Mr. White, who has never been seen in body, only online, has come in handy on quite a few occasions for the CHRC and Warman, such as when Warman and the Canadian Jewish Congress tried to get the Canadian government to permit them to block foreign websites from Canadian Internet users.

[...]

It may well be that the e-mails to Fine were sent by someone other than his own staff. And it may well be that there is somebody named Bill White who is not just another sock puppet for Warman, Dean Steacy and others. It could be. And, with any other group of people, that would be the normal thing to assume. But we're long past the point where the CHRC can be regarded as normal, and where their statements -- even under oath -- can be believed without independent verification.

The madness continued unabated--Nay! was cranked to 11 on the crazy-scale--in Ezra's comments section. For example, Connie Fournier from FreeDominion showed up:

(As an aside, give Mr. White credit: this guy knows how to hate. Shaidle, MacMillan and their crew-- they're nothing but wannabes next to him)

No, they didn't let Bill White get them down at Ezra's place, because they figured it couldn't be a real Neo-Nazi writing this stuff, it had to be...wait for it...Richard Warmanpretending to be a Neo-Nazi so as to...somehow...infiltrate...well, at this point things get a bit obscure.

In any case, that's how bent this debate has become, when the Speechy movement goes beyond arguing that no limitations on expression are justified in stopping the spread of Neo-Nazis, to denying that they have corporeal being.

However, they are most accurately viewed as signalling the inevitable process by which a political party or movement sheds its Idealism in the face of hard reality. Where once the CPoC could argue that there was a clear moral distinction between them and the Liberals, now they can merely argue that there is a barely perceptible moral distinction between them and the Liberals. In three months, they will be arguing that their latest scandal isn't as bad as Adscam was. In six months...well, everybody count the spoons on Parliament Hill.

(PS. I'm hoping Harper does what so many people have tried to do for so many years-- get Puffy off the air-waves. For one thing, that would literalize the "stuffing" metaphor. Would they be forced to give him two Senate seats, a la the major airlines?)